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BOO STEW

Name: BOO STEW
Author: Donna Washington
ISBN: 978-1-68263-221-5

by Donna Washington ; illustrated by Jeffrey Ebbeler ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2021

This fairy-tale–style story is a standout pleaser for the right crowd, with a year-round shelf life.

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Will Curly Locks find anyone who appreciates her cooking?

Unlike most residents of Toadsuck, Curly Locks doesn’t mind the Scares, shadowlike creatures who inhabit the swamp. They keep to themselves, other than their “hootin’ and hollerin’,” which can annoy folks at night. Curly Locks only cares about cooking. But for some reason, people aren’t interested in her batwing brownies, cat-hair cupcakes, or toad-eye toffees. One day, the mayor is enjoying his breakfast when a little Scare plants itself in the middle of his plate. The mayor flees, and a succession of townspeople comes to help only to be chased off by even bigger Scares. When Curly Locks hears of the kerfuffle, she wonders if anyone has tried cooking for the Scares. She saunters up to the mayor’s house with her possum grease and toadstools and heads to the kitchen. With a promise of her famous Boo Stew and a calm demeanor, she gets the Scares to clean up their mess before sitting down for a meal, striking a historic deal with them that benefits the whole town and gives her someone to cook for. Curly Locks is a plucky Black girl among a multiracial cast of characters whose country accents enhance the story’s setting. The inky, blotchy Scares are pretty scary, and Curly Locks’ food is stomach-turning, hilarious for lovers of gross humor.

This fairy-tale–style story is a standout pleaser for the right crowd, with a year-round shelf life. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2021

ISBN: 978-1-68263-221-5

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Peachtree

Review Posted Online: July 13, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2021

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S PARANORMAL & SUPERNATURAL

- BOOK REVIEW
A BIG, SPOOKY HOUSE
by Donna Washington & illustrated by Jacqueline Rogers

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.

The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: June 21, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
ON THE FIRST DAY OF FIRST GRADE
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Sarah Jennings

- BOOK REVIEW
FIVE LITTLE BUNNIES
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino

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IT'S NOT EASY BEING A GHOST

From the It's Not Easy Being series

by Marilyn Sadler ; illustrated by Stephanie Laberis ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 13, 2024

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.

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A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.

Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)